The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1887-02-10
The Facts Which Justify a Suit by
Texas Against the State of
Kansas.
AUSTIN, February Z, 1887.

Kansas.
AUSTIN, February Z, 1887
Editors of THE STATESMAN.
AT your request furnish The STATES
MAN with a statement of facts, which have
become known to me as a boundary COM
missioner, that seem to justify suit by
Texas against Kansas for territory within
the limits of the latter state.
The claim of Texas against Kansas ex-
tends to some eight large counties, lying
south of the Arkansas river, while, on pre-
cisely the same grounds, she claims that
part of the Indian Territory lying south
of those counties.
Prior to the Mexican revolution against
Spain it is well-known Texas was a pro-
vince of that kingdom. Her territory, as
claimed by Spain, anciently extended
northward across the Red, Arkansas and
Kansas rivers, and even to the waters of
the Missouri.
In year the 1919, diplomatic contest of
fifteen years was ended, by a treaty of
boundary between Spain and the
United States, which defined very
infinitely the boundary between their ter
ritories agreed upon.
1t was declared that the boundary
should commence at the mouth of the
Sabine river, pass up that stream to the
thirty-second parallel of latitude, then
north to Red river and up Red river to
/ the Tooth meridian, then north to the Ar
kansas river and up that river to its
source, ETC., "the whole lin the words of
the treaty. being as laid down in
Melish's map of the United States, i'm
proved to January LIST, 1878"
Altar Texas became a republic, in the
year 1888, in treaty between her and the
United States, that boundary was recog-
nized as the boundary between the terri
tories of those two governments; and it
was agreed that the part of it from the
mouth of the Sabine to Red river should
be marked by commissioners without de-
lay; but that the balance of it should be
left unmarked until it should suit the con-
venience of both governments to mark it;
and, till then, each government should oc-
cupy along the unmarked part of the
boundary without interference from the
other. According to this treaty the
eastern part of the boundary was marked
by commissioners in 1910 and 1S41; but
the balance of it has remained unmarked
till the present time. Texas, however, in
the meantime, in 1850, sold to the United
States all of her territory west of the true
Tooth meridian, and north of the parallel
of SO deg. 30 min.
About the unmarked boundary along the
Red and Arkansas rivers there was no pos
sibility of dispute; but as to the lines not
cut into the earth by these streams, the
treaty makers had deemed it necessary to
define the boundary by such delineation
of natural land marks as that there could
never be any dispute about it.
Mr.. Adams, for the United States, had
proposed for the boundary between these
rivers straight line between the not
able bends of the two rivers which lay be-
tween the 101st and 102d meridians as laid
down on Melish's map. Had his PROPOSE
ton been accepted, the boundary line, at
its intersection of Red river, would have
been about sixty miles east of the true Tooth
meridian, as now understood, and at the
Arkansas river, about twenty miles east of
that meridian, accordings to the posi-
ton On recent maps of the bends desig-
mated.
But the Spanish envoy rejected that
proposition, and proposed instead line
more than a degree further east towit:
the Tooth meridian according to Melish's
map.
This more eastern line was accepted by
Mr.. Adams and became the boundary.
It's position on the face of the country
was indicated, mot only by the abrupt bends
of the two rivers designated In Mr..
Adams rejected proposition, but was pre-
cisely pointed out by the prominent land
marks shown on Melish's map in its i'm
mediate vicinity. These were the great
north bend of the Arkansas river in which
it intersected that river, the initial point
of Pixies survey of that river Infinitely
described in his report to the government
of the United States) noted on the map
on one side of the line, and the mouth of
large creek now known as Rattle Snake
creek, laid down on the other side of it
and the Wichita mountains, across the
eastern extremity of which it passed.
The Spanish envoy had demanded that
the line should be where great natural
land marks would fix its position on the
face of the country beyond the possibility
of future controversy; and in these land
marks and others, shown by the map
agreed upon as diagram, in the treaty,
his demands were fully met.
Had Melish's map continued in use,o in
the knowledge of the country, there never
could have been doubt as to where this
boundary line was.
But that old map was superseded
by improved maps, and passed out of use
in less than two years after the treaty,
and for half a century was to both gov
ernments lost document.
Forty-six years ago, their joint com
missioners, to run the eastern part of the
boundary agreed upon in the treaty, were
in controversy as to the exact point of
beginning, and sought for copy of that
map to learn how the boundary was laid
down in it. But after, extensive research
by them and their governments, not a
single copy of it could be found either in
Texas or the United States, and they
were compelled to proceed without one.
When Texas had become incorporated
into the union, in the absence of this
map, about the year 1853, officers of the
federal government assumed that the
true one hundredth meridian, without re-
spect to Melish's map, was the boundary
line of the treaty, and proceeded, without
the consent of Texas, to mark it on the
ground near 100 miles farther west than
the line which the treaty had adopted for
the boundary, as it was shown by the
treaty map. That map being lost and
its delineations forgotten, however, it was
difficult to gainsay this assumption, and,
Lad it remained in the obscurity which
then shrouded it, the right of Texas to